Half Truth and Hyperbole
by Ben Thryss
Summary: She is a Jedi, he is an outcast. She is Republic, he is a Separatist. When negotiations between the two sides begin, the pair will be thrown together, love will grow, and the will of the Force shall be overridden. These are the memoires of Marek Bonteri. ON INDEFINITE (not forever) HIATUS.
1. Prologue

Prologue

It seems so long ago that these events took place. I was a young boy back then, but now, I am an old man, preparing to become one with the Force. I have lived a full life, with enough adventure and action for any man. I started as a misfit boy, someone who could care less what happened to the Galaxy that he lived in, but I became one of its most important figures.

My entire life has been based off a lie. A lie that sprang from the root of a half-truth, a half-truth that sprang from the root of a hyperbole.

For the sake of those who come after, I will recount these events as if the boy in the story were a stranger, someone whom I have never met in my life. I only hope I can manage to get it all out before the end comes. My name is Marek Bonteri, and this is my story.


	2. Chapter 1: Not Entirely of the Light

Chapter 1

_Not Entirely of the Light_

Jedi Apprentice Ahsoka Tano, aged sixteen, stood relaxed in the office of Senator Padme Amidala, contemplating the war that had raged across the Galaxy for a little over two years. It had all started on the planet Geonosis, when her Master, Anakin Skywalker, his Master, Obi-Wan Kenobi, and the woman whom she currently shared the room with, Padmé Amidala, had been captured by rogue elements of the Galactic Republic. A great battle was fought, and, unavoidably, a war was started between the Galactic Republic, and the Confederacy of Independent Systems. She raised her hand to her left headtail, a nervous habit she had picked up on a mission to Malastare, as her focus drifted back to the present day. The touch sent a tingle from the point of contact to the tip of her left montral. She rose from the large chair she occupied, as Padme remarked, "If only I could speak with Senator Bonteri."

"Who's he?" Ahsoka asked, somewhat curious.

Padme turned to look in her direction, before replying, "He is a she, a Senator of the Confederacy of Independent Systems."

Ahsoka spun on her heel, the Padawan extension of her Akul tooth headdress whipping her headtails, before asking, shocked, "You're friends with a Separatist? One of Dooku's pawns?"

Padme's deep brown orbs bored into Ahsoka's electric blue eyes, and she replied, "The Separatists used to be a part of the Republic. I was close with many of the Senators who left. I may not agree with them, but they're more than pawns."

"So why don't you talk to her?" Ahsoka asked, moving to lean against Padme's desk.

Padme shrugged, before replying, "It's been made illegal. The Senate thinks that opening dialogues will only legitimize the Separatist movement."

Ahsoka leaned closer to Padme, the Coruscanti sunset reflecting off her orange skin, and said, "Well, sometimes Master Skywalker and I hold what we call aggressive negotiations. We recognize that, sometimes, the rules need to be broken, and action taken into our own hands."

Padme lifted her eyes from her desk. "You just gave me an idea." She said, "As a Jedi, you have special clearance, right?"

"Right."

"And you would be allowed to travel to neutral worlds, such as Mandalore, from where we could board a cargoship to a Separatist planet."

"You want me to use my privileges as a Jedi to smuggle you behind enemy lines?" Ahsoka asked incredulously.

"Well, it's just that you could get us through to her, and I haven't seen her or her family in so long."

"Relax, I'll take you."

"Thank you, Ahsoka."

"So where are we headed?"

"Raxus."

"The Separatist Capitol?" Ahsoka asked.

"Yes. It's where Bonteri lives, so that's our destination." Padme replied.

Ahsoka smiled, and pressed a green button on her the comlink attached to her left forearm. "Captain Rex, prepare a shuttle for me at docking bay seven." She said.

"Yes, Commander." Came the reply.

"Thank you, Ahsoka." Padme said.

"No problem, what are friends for." Ahsoka replied.

...oOo...

Hours later, they left their respective living quarters, and started out for docking bay seven. The turbolift they met up in had a glass panel that gave the occupant a spectacular view of the Senate district, and Ahsoka contemplated the scene before her as the turbolift descended the side of the building.

'_The beauty of this world never ceases to amaze me_.' she thought.

The rest of the lift ride passed in silence, but they could both see that each other's mind was a tumult of confused thoughts. The lift opened, and the pair stepped out onto the docking platform, to be met by a Clone Trooper clad in white and blue armour. "Good day, Commander." Said Rex, "May I ask why you need this shuttle so suddenly?"

"No you may not, Captain." Ahsoka replied.

"Very well, Commander."

They boarded the shuttle, and Ahsoka started the takeoff sequence. She pulled back on the control sticks, and the shuttle lifted gracefully off the platform, and into space. "So, how long have you known Senator Bonteri?" Ahsoka asked curiously.

"I've known her since I was fourteen. We met during negotiations between Raxus and Naboo." Padme replied.

"So, you've known her for a long time." The Togrutan Padawan remarked.

"Yes, I've known her for quite a while." Padme confirmed, as Ahsoka pulled the Hyperspace lever.

The next few hours were spent in silence, as the ship barrelled through the blue tunnels of Hyperspace. During this silence, Ahsoka meditated, and had a vision. She saw herself, and a boy look up the side of a building, to see another boy sitting in a windowsill. There was a lightsaber at his side, so she assumed he was a Jedi, but the lack of voices impeded her ability to understand the vision itself. It ended, and she awoke to a beeping Navicomp.

"Dropping from Hyperspace." She stated, and pushed the hyperspace lever to its upright position. The shuttle slid out of Hyperspace, to find itself in orbit of Mandalore.

"Mandalore docking control, this is the transport shuttle Orion, requesting permission to land." Ahsoka said, opening a comm channel.

Several moments passed, before a reply came. "Transport Orion, you are cleared to land in district three, section three eight two seven."

Ahsoka pushed the control sticks down, and the elegant shuttle descended into the Mandalorian atmosphere. "So, once we land what are we going to do?" the Padawan asked.

Padmé looked over at her, and replied, "We'll board a cargoship bound for Raxus, and meet up with Senator Bonteri. I contacted her while you were meditating. She'll be waiting for us."

The shuttle touched down on the deck, and Ahsoka hit the control to lower the boarding ramp. The pair strode off the shuttle, and was met by a pair of Mandalorian police. "Clearance passes, please." One of them said. Padme stuck out a small card that confirmed her identity, and Ahsoka did the same. He looked at the cards for a moment, and stated, "Identity checks out. Welcome to Mandalore, Senator Amidala and Padawan Tano." With that said, they walked off.

"We should get to the ship." Padme stated.

Several minutes later, they had boarded an Altam class cargo carrier bound for the Separatist Capitol of Raxus.

It was rather cramped, '_But then again_' Ahsoka thought, _'It is a cargoship, after all._'

The trip would take just over three hours, so the Senator and Jedi decided to have an afternoon meal. Fortunately, the vessel was stocked with food. Unfortunately, said food was not above protein pellets and herbal tea. After sitting down in their seats with their 'gourmet' meal, they began to talk. "So, does this Senator Bonteri have any children?" Ahsoka asked.

"Yes, she has two sons." Said the Nubian Senator

There was silence for a moment before Ahsoka asked, "Well? What are they like?"

"Her eldest, Lux, is the more likeable of the two, and she has already chosen that he will succeed her as Raxian Senator. The other son, Marek, I haven't seen in a long time, but if memory serves, he'll definitely get on your nerves." Padmé answered.

"Get on my nerves how?" Ahsoka asked, before popping a protein pellet into her mouth.

Padme looked as if she were attempting to recall something distant, before replying, "He's a bit of a rebel. Not a 'you and Anakin' kind of rebel, more of an 'I have different ideals' kind of rebel. His attitude eats away at your mind until you just give up."

Ahsoka scowled. "Sounds like he's pretty arrogant. How old are they?" she asked.

"Lux is your age, and Marek is fifteen."

"Well then, being Separatists, they'd better not get on my nerves."

After finishing their meals, both decided to get some sleep, as there was still a good three hours before reaching Raxus. Once again, Ahsoka was plagued by a vision she could not understand. She was on a ship, beside the boy she had seen in the windowsill earlier, before Dooku. The boy had his lightsaber in hand, and flicked the ignition switch. Just as sabers began to clash, the vision ended. She opened her eyes to see the 'fasten restraints' sign glowing. She pulled the crash restraints over her head, and down by her sides, into twinned receivers. The vessel approached a massive Separatist blockade. Ahsoka looked out the viewport to her left, before turning her head to look at Padme. Her thoughts of concern needed not be voiced, for they were shared, and acknowledged by both. The cargo runner touched down on a landing pad in the Capitol city, and the pair disembarked. Battle droids stopped the passengers, asking for identification and clearance. One of the B-1 series droids was making an approach toward the pair, when a woman stepped in front of it, a well-timed distraction. Another woman stepped up beside them, and led them aside, past the droids, and to a waiting figure near a transport shuttle. The figure swivelled around, to reveal the face of Senator Bonteri. "Hello, old friend." she said.

Padmé turned to Ahsoka, and introduced her to the Senator, "Ahsoka, this is Mina Bonteri."

Ahsoka looked the Senator up and down, before asking, "_You're_ a Separatist?"

Bonteri shrugged. "But of course, my dear. What were you expecting?"

Ahsoka shrugged, and Bonteri turned back to Padmé, before saying, "Come, I have a transport waiting."

The trio boarded a small red shuttle and flew away in the direction of the Bonteri mansion. The trip lasted mere seconds, and they stepped off the boarding ramp of the transport in front of the very large mansion before them. "Lux!" called Mina, "Come help our guests with their luggage!"

A tall boy hopped off one of the stone railings, and made his way down the stairs. "Please, allow me." he said, as he took Padmé's baggage case. He made his way past her, and reached for Ahsoka's bag. "May I?" he asked.

"I can handle it." she stated, with a look of venom in her eyes.

They ascended the staircase leading to the innards of the massive estate, and set their bags down in the lobby.

...oOo...

Several minutes later, Ahsoka stepped out the back door, slightly ashamed of herself, when she heard someone ask, "You're a Jedi, aren't you?"

She turned around, to see Lux sitting on one of the stone platforms that lined the staircase railings.

"Yes, why do you ask?" she replied.

"Before the war, I was told the Jedi were good, but now all my friends say that they are responsible for what is happening to the Galaxy." he stated, jumping off the platform, and descending the stairs alongside the Jedi Padawan.

Ahsoka cocked her head slightly, and turned said head to face him. "I'm the first Jedi you've ever met, aren't I?" she asked.

"Well... Yes."

"Look at me, am I so bad?" she asked.

He looked her up and down, quite thoroughly, and looked about to respond, when another voice sounded from behind them.

"You might as well not answer, she's not interested in you." it said.

Ahsoka struggled to hold back a blush over the rather odd comment. The two of them turned to face the mansion, and saw a boy with striking white hair sitting in a windowsill, at about the seventh floor. Lux scowled, before yelling back, "And how would you know, idiot?"

"I sensed it coming from her thoughts. That's hardly something that should get me called an idiot, my not-so-dear brother." the one she assumed was Marek retorted.

She decided to break the hateful stare that Lux was sending, and shouted, "You're Force sensitive?"

He raised his gloved left hand to his face, and replied, "Who's askin'"

"Jedi Padawan Ahsoka Tano is asking."

"Well, in that case, I won't answer. I'm not exactly _fond_ of the Jedi."

She wasn't surprised by this, considering they were on Raxus. "We aren't the bad guys in this war, Count Dooku and the Sith are." she stated calmly.

He jumped from the window, falling several dozen feet, and landing perfectly on one of the steep stone railings. It was then that she saw that his left hand wasn't gloved, it was mechanical. As was the entire lower quarter of his left arm. "My Master is not a bad man, he simply takes orders from a bad person." he stated, sounding slightly annoyed.

"Dooku is your Master?"

"Yes."

With that one word, she sprang into motion. Drawing her lightsaber into her right hand, and her shoto, a very short version of a lightsaber, into her left, she charged. Activating her sabers, she slashed horizontally, both ways, hoping to injure, but not kill. She was to have no such luck, however, as an aquamarine blade sprang forth from his right hand, intercepting her lightsaber, before flipping his grip to block the shoto.

"What the Kriff are you _doing_!" he yelled, as their sabers clashed once again. She gave him no answer, and simply pressed her offensive. She lashed out, spinning around, using the momentum of her swings to fuel others. He blocked each attack expertly, never putting in a counter attack. '_Strange,' _she thought, '_He isn't fighting back._' she pulled back a few steps, and shouted, "Surrender, Sith!"

He seemed taken aback, and retorted, "Sith? _Sith_! Do I look all Sithy to you?"

She fixed him with a venomous glare. "Sith are masters of deception. How do I know you aren't attempting to fool me?"

...oOo...

As soon as she said this, he deactivated his saber, clipping it to his belt. As another sign of submission, he raised his hands behind his head. Not buying his 'supposed' surrender, she leapt at him once again. Just as the emerald blade was about to connect to his head, the lightsaber flew from his belt, into his flesh hand, and he deflected the attack. "Okay, lady, you're really starting to piss me off." he warned.

She simply kept attacking. '_Alrighty then,' _he thought, '_Time to make this crazy Jedi give up._'

He very suddenly back rolled along the ground, rose, and began a crushing offensive. He lashed out with his custom lightsaber style, a variant of the Shien form, with elements of the Juyo and Vaapad forms thrown in to add some pizzaz. She frantically blocked each attack, having not expected any of said attacks in the first place, before quickly regaining her composure, and brought up a strong defense. He easily penetrated her defense, and disarmed her of her shoto and saber before she could even blink. He kicked her in the abdomen, bringing the orange skinned girl to her knees.

"Please, stop trying to attack me and listen. I'm not some crazy Sith. I don't run around killing for the fun of it. I was trained by a Sith, yes, but that doesn't make me one of them. I'm not completely of the Light, either. I'm somewhere in the middle. I am not any kind of Jedi. I'm a Force adept. Nothing more, nothing less." he said, completely seething with anger, not moving the aquamarine blade from its position at her throat.

Quite suddenly, the door to the mansion burst open, and Mina Bonteri stalked out. "Marek Bonteri, how dare you attack one of our guests?" she roared.

"What are you talking about, she attacked me!" he yelled, furiously, in self defense.

"Master Jedi, I need to have a word with Marek. Feel free to help yourself to some refreshments inside." Mina said, completely ignoring Marek's defense.

"Alright."

The Jedi turned and started to ascend the stairs, followed closely by the eldest Bonteri child, who was trying, and failing, to win the attention of Ahsoka. Mina waited until they were inside before she whipped her head around to face Marek.

"What were you thinking?" she snapped.

"I didn't do anything! I only defended myself!"

"I told you to stay in your room."

"And you expected me to listen?" he asked sarcastically.

"You know full well the answer to that question."

"Yes, yes I suppose I do."

"Haven't we had this conversation enough times? When I have an important guest over, I can't have you running in, lightsaber ablaze!" she shouted, waving her hands toward his still active weapon.

"Technically, it's your fault I have this." he said, shaking the saber a few times.

"How so?"

"You asked Dooku to train me."

"Only so you didn't strangle any more harmless people."

"That was an accident, and plus, I was eight!" he yelled defensively.

"And you still can't seem to control yourself!"

"Why can't you just leave me _alone_?" he roared.

"Why couldn't you just be a regular teenager?" she yelled in reply.

"That is _not_ my fault." he stated, turning his back to her.

"It damn well is, Marek."

He gestured back to the building.

"Just leave me alone." he stated, attempting to stay calm.

"Marek, stay away from the guests. _Especially_ the Jedi girl."

"Why should I?"

"Because they have enough problems on their hands. They don't need the issue of _you_ as well." she said.

She whipped around, and ascended the stairs, reentering the building. His blade retracted into its gleaming artistic silver hilt, and he backflipped all the way up to his window, and retook his position sitting there with his arms draped over his knees, his legs bent, and his head hung.

...oOo...

The eldest of the Bonteri family turned her head to Ahsoka, and said, "I very much apologize for his behaviour. He's gets defensive around new people, and I think he percieved you as something of a threat."

"He wasn't lying. I thought he was a Sith, and I attacked him!" the Padawan exclaimed.

"There's no need to defend him. He needs to learn that there are consequences to his actions." Mina replied, turning back to Padmé.

Ahsoka sat down at the conference table that was the centerpiece of the room, and contemplated the scene that had just unfolded in the garden moments before. His fighting style was similar to her own, and he possessed a power to par with his saber skill. He moved with a fluid grace that a seemingly average adolescent of his age would, normally, not possess. He restrained himself from killing her as they clashed, but Ahsoka had sensed the burning rage inside him. One thing in particular had snatched her attention away from the fight, however, resulting in her defeat. Something she found enchanting and disturbing at the same time. Although most would not have taken the time to look, she had noticed that his eyes were the same colour as her lightsaber.

_'Exactly the same._'

**End of Chapter 1.**

**Well, that's a wrap. Hope you liked it. By the way, send me a Private Message with a good Sith name, and I'll give you an OC in the story. This is a contest. I would very much like to thank the following for reviewing the very vague prologue that i posted.**

**darth cirus: **Thank you so much for being the first to review

**alienvspredator5:** Sorry the update took so long

**ArcherofEchingovzoo: **Be quiet, Glowstick. Lies. Yes hm hm yes hm hm hm yes hm yes. Most indubitably indeed.


	3. Chapter 2: Forming Bonds

Chapter 2

_Forming Bonds_

Marek Bonteri, still reclining in his windowsill, was totally seething in anger.

'_A _Jedi_ attacks me, and _I _get blamed_ _for it! My mother must really hate me._' he thought.

He swivelled, and hopped off the ledge, into his quarters. He pulled his lightsaber off his belt, and activated the blade. Taking a battle stance, legs spread just beyond shoulder width, with the saber raised upside-down behind his back, he began an exercise. Mentally commanding a pair of training drones to activate, he backed up slightly. Quite unexpectedly, however, instead of their usual moderately paced firing rates, the droids began firing like repeater blasters.

'_Lux, you bantha-brained fool._' he thought.

Moving rapidly, he flipped his blade into his usual reversed grip, with his hand along the choke point that connected the blade emitter to the main hilt, and twisted rapidly, attempting to deflect the bolts away from his body. His brother, damn his soul, played pranks such as this occasionally. Reaching out mentally, he attempted to deactivate the remotes with the Force, without any effect. The fool had included a de-deactivator, which would prevent the remote from being switched off once active. He was reluctant to destroy the drones, as they were the last two he possessed, but, seeing no alternative, he lunged. Taking them by surprise, he bisected the first laser ball straight down the middle. He attempted to swing at the second, when it swerved out of the way before he even came close. Turning to face it, he failed to notice his custom made humanoid droid emerge from a closet, and fire a pulse-burst at him, sending him through a wall, into an adjacent room.

"Rikhe, what are you doing?" The snowy haired boy roared.

Although he knew the droid had heard him, he could clearly see his best friend had not registered Marek's sentence. He heard the droid mumbling to itself.

"Detected program anomaly. Attempting to purge. Purge failed. Switching to backup memory core. Backup memory core infected..."

Lux had really outdone himself this time. Getting up, he engaged the focusing crystal in the steel cylinder in his right hand, and an aquamarine blade of pure plasmatic energy burst from the hilt with a distinctive _snap-hiss._ The remote opened fire again, sending out bursts of red ionic energy at an alarming rate. He latently noticed a comm panel beeping, probably the occupants of the lower floor, wondering what all the ruckus was. Jumping back and forth, he expertly deflected each and every bolt, but was helpless when Rikhe tackled him, sending out another pulse-burst directly downward, sending the infuriated fifteen year old through six layers of wood, wires, and plasteel.

"AHHGH!" he screamed in pain.

He burst through the final floor, and landed directly on the conference table that the two Senators, his brother, and the Jedi currently sat around. Bringing his only flesh hand to his torso, he felt for broken bones. He cried out when his ring finger came into contact with his fifth left side rib. Badly bruised, but no fracture or break.

"Marek, what happened?" Ahsoka asked, as the younger boy got to his feet.

Shooting out his mechanical hand, the lightsaber that had gone flying when he landed came spiralling into it. A _snap-hiss_, and the blade was at his brother's throat.

"You moron! You went WAY too far this time!" Marek yelled, just as the grey and blue droid known as Rikhe emerged from the ceiling. "Take cover!"

Whipping around, he rapidly twirled the blade, blocking every bolt from the blaster that Rikhe held, as well as the bolts from the remote, that came his way. He intentionally let one past, and it struck Lux in the shoulder, burning him.

"Lux, shut him down!" Marek ordered.

"Fine! Protocal droid, remote droid, shut down, authorization code Haroon-Gamma-45-11-38." Lux shouted, practically sneering.

Both Rikhe and the remote fell to the ground, inactive.

"Marek, what the hell happened?" Mina asked, obviously extremely irritated.

"Your bantha of an older son decided to reprogram Rikhe and my remotes, that's what!" Marek yelled back, fuming.

"Don't blame your brother for the thousands of credits you just cost me!" Mina retorted.

"Why wouldn't I? It's his fault!"

"I refuse to believe that Lux could engage in such juvenile activities as these!"

"ARRRRGHH!" Marek roared.

He raised his right hand, his lower fingers still curved around the hilt of his saber, drawing upon his anger, and threw the large conference table through a wall. He raised his other hand, and plucked Lux off the floor through the Force, hurling the older boy toward him. He stopped his brother a millimeter from being sliced in half by the energy sword in his hand.

"Someday I will make you pay." Marek threatened through gritted teeth.

He flicked his wrist, and Lux went flying into the back wall.

"How dare you!" His mother screamed.

"Quite easily!"

With that said, Marek stalked out of the room, his posture giving away the fact that he wished desparately to kill someone. Ahsoka, being the Jedi she was, followed him out of the room, once again descending the stairs into the outside garden.

...oOo...

"AARGHH!" he roared, as he slashed a tree in half.

"Marek, be calm. You're going to hurt someone." she said.

The green eyed teenager whipped around, shooting Ahsoka a look that could have killed.

"You have no authority over me, Jedi!"

"Maybe so, but it would be in your best interest to calm yourself."

Marek considered this for a brief moment, before purging his anger into the Force. He sat down on the bench that had been in the shade of the tree he had just cut down.

"You let your anger flourish itself far too much." Ahsoka reprimanded.

"My anger is under my control at all times. Notice I practiced restraint, and didn't kill Lux, despite the fact that I would very much like to." Marek responded.

...oOo...

Ahsoka was heavily irritated at the younger boy, not only for nearly killing Padmé, but for tapping into his anger to attain power.

"You may have restrained yourself, but that doesn't excuse the fact that you tapped into your anger to enhance your powers." she said.

He propped his elbows up on his knees, and dropped his face into his hands.

"Why do you care?" he asked, sounding dejected.

"I care because I'm a Jedi. I care about everyone."

He chuckled lightly.

"What?" she asked.

"My father was killed in a Republic attack led by a _Jedi_. I know that that Jedi is responsible for the death of the only one who treated me as an equal to my brother. He was heartlessly killed by a lightsaber, and someday I will make that that lightsaber's weilder pay." Marek replied.

Ahsoka, now feeling rather sorry for the boy, sat down beside him on the small wrought iron bench and draped her arm across his shoulders. She felt him tense up from the touch, but he didn't move to escape it, either.

"I had no idea. I'm so sorry." she all but whispered.

He lifted his head from his hands and gave her a smile that, in her opinion, could have lit the Galaxy. She felt her heart beat a little faster.

"It's okay. I can tell you had nothing to do with the operation." he said.

She didn't hear him, however, as her head was too busy processing her feelings that were related to this white haired boy.

'_What are you thinking? Not only is he a Separatist, but it's a violation of the Jedi Code to form attachments._' she thought.

Lines of the Code kept repeating in her head, chief among them being, '_There is no attachment; there is indifference._'

She barely registered a gunmetal grey hand waving in front of her.

"Hello? Is anyone in there?" she heard Marek ask.

She blinked rapidly, coming out of her chaotic jumble of thoughts.

"Hmm?" she said.

"I was just asking a bit about you, like where you come from. You know, stuff like that." he replied.

"I was originally from the planet Shili, but I was raised on Coruscant at the Jedi Temple. I was taken as an apprentice about two and a half years ago, during the first battle of Cristophsis." she said, sounding somewhat distant.

"Hmm, interesting. I was born here, on Raxus. I've only been offworld once, but that was when i went on one of my mom's diplomatic trips just over five years ago. There was an incident just over a year and a half ago, that caused my dearest mother to forbid me to leave this rather dreary place." he said, gesturing with his left hand up at his home. "I hope that I will get to leave soon."

"What kind of incident?"

"Well... I kind of shot up a bar."

"Well why in the name of the Force wold you do that?"

"I only pulled my blaster in self defense. They attacked me."

"Ah. You should be careful about those kinds of places."

"I try."

The door at the top of the steps opened up, and Padme stepped out.

"Ahsoka!" she called, "I need you in here for a bit!"

The Togrutan girl shifted slightly on the bench, as the door slid shut again.

"You should probably go." he said, his face once again the picture of impassiveness.

"Yeah." she agreed.

She rose to her feet, and swivelled to face the emerald eyed teenager on the bench. Before she had really thought through what she was doing, she pecked him lightly on the cheek, before turning, and rushing inside, leaving a heavily confused Force adept sitting on the bench, ruminating.

...oOo...

'_Why did I just do that? Are you a fool? Did you just have some sort of strange brain haemorrhage that causes you to kiss Seppies?_' all these thoughts, and more, flowed through Ahsoka's mind at once, not giving her any time to work them out.

"Good news, Ahsoka." Padmé said, "Mina has agreed to suggest a vote to extend a hand of peace to the Republic."

Ahsoka's expression brightened a bit, and she exclaimed, "That's great, Padmé!"

"There is a meeting of the Separatist Senate in an hour or so. Mina will put the vote on the floor then."

Ahsoka smiled, and turned her eyes to the windows that broke the back wall of the room. Beyond them, she could see Marek, still on the bench, turning his lightsaber over in his hands.

"Well then, let's go."

...oOo...

Marek could sense him approaching from a mile away. It wasn't the best idea for Lux to walk right up to Marek after doing what he had just done, but the green eyed boy was too happy to care about it at that particular moment. He would kill Lux when he needed to be cheered up.

"What do you want, Lux?" he asked, with a little less hostility than he normally would have.

His brother stopped a few feet in front of him, and made a grave mistake. He said the wrong thing.

"She's mine." he stated simply.

Marek looked up, truly confused, before asking, "What are you talking about?"

"The Jedi. I saw you two together, and I'm saying 'Stay away from her.'"

Marek rose to his feet, standing a good five centimeters above his brother's height, and said, "I don't know what you're talking about."

Lux pushed him, and the backs of his shins slammed into the bench he had been occupying. "Lux, when are you going to learn that your word isn't the only word. If she likes me better, it's your fault. You got the arrogant politician personality, but I got the good looks." Marek goaded.

Lux huffed, and stalked back up to the mansion.

Marek sighed, before turning toward the center of the garden. He pressed a button on his wrist controller, and the ground began to recess. The soil was thrown all over, as an iris door opened in the ground, and his personal starship, the _Aeon,_ rose up from the underground hangar. Although the ship had been grounded for some time, it was in near perfect condition. He had extensively modified all of it's systems, and had added a more efficient navigational computer, and a deadly baradium torpedo launcher. He lowered the ramp, and entered the ship.

"Honey, I'm home!" he called.

Loud beeping could be heard, followed by a crash, before an R-5 series astromech service droid zipped around the corner of the hallway leading from the engine room.

"Get the engines fixed, Homer. when I finally get permission to leave the planet, I don't want to waste any time." he told the stark white droid.

It bleeped several times, and then turned back the way it came.

...oOo...

"How many lives must be lost, on both sides, before we see the futility of this war?" Mina asked, adressing the full Senate, "Surely there is room in the galaxy for Republic and Confederate planets to peacefully coexist. I move to immediately open peace negotiations with Chancellor Palpatine on Coruscant."

A green woman scowled, before snipping, "The Corporate Alliance will never allow this to happen!"

A man stood from his seat and shouted, "This is a democracy, and, unlike the Republic, corporations do not rule us!"

Ahsoka looked down upon the proceedings, a cowl pulled over her montrals to conceal her face, and leaned slightly closer to Padmé.

"They're so much more efficient than the Senate back home, huh?"

Padmé smiled. "That they are, my friend."

She once again diverted her attention to the scene playing out before her.

The hologram of the Separatist Head of State, Count Dooku, raised its arms.

"In accordance with the bylaws of independant systems, a voice vote is demanded. All in favor of opening a diplomatic dialogue with Chancellor Palpatine, say 'aye'."

Dozens of representatives stood and shouted out.

"Aye!"

Dooku spoke again, "All opposed."

The green skinned woman raised her hand, and called out, "Nay!" no others, however, spoke out against the vote for peace.

"The 'ayes' have it." Dooku declared.

Ahsoka noticed Padmé and Mina shoot each other a smile, before smiling to herself and exiting the chamber. She didn't, however, hear what came next. Mina raised her hand, and the chamber fell silent.

"I will go to Coruscant as representative of the Confederacy." she declared.

The silence did not last. The chamber erupted into a cacophony of protests.

"Silence!" Dooku shouted.

"Thank you, Head of State." Mina bowed, and continued, "We will look as if we are not sincere if we attend the meetings by hologram. Therefore, I shall depart for Coruscant when the Senate deems it time."

Dooku nodded. "Very well, Senator Bonteri. I will extend an arm of peace to the Republic, and you shall depart at dawn tomorrow." he said.

Mina nodded. "Very well, Head of State."

With that, the various representatives of the Confederacy rose from their seats, and filed out of the chamber.

...oOo...

"What do you mean, the hyperdrive motivator is damaged?" Marek shouted over the sound of his plasma cutter.

"I mean, Master," Rikhe said, "That the hyperdrive motivator has been fused into the engine housing."

"Yeah, yeah. I heard you."

"Then why did you ask me again?"

"Oy, I've really got to update your humanity programming."

"Why would that be, Master? I seem to be operating normaly now."

"Never mind, just get me a new motivator. Better yet, take one from Lux's starship."

The droid walked away, leaving the fifteen year old alone to his thoughts.

"_Damned motivator. Lux probably did it._"

Then his mind drifted in another direction, to the Jedi who was visiting.

"_She's a Jedi. Enough said to make you hate her. Yet she seems kind, and just. I sure hope she's not affiliated with that Skywalker bastard. That would be bad. Lux is acting like a possessive fool, all because he likes the way she looks. Come to think of it, she's not bad looking. Why would she kiss me. She barely knows me. Actually, barely is an understatement. Not at all would be more accurate._"

So engrossed was he in what he was doing, that he failed to notice the orange skinned figure standing over him.

"Boo." she said simply.

He jumped, his head slamming into the engine housing, before responding, "Sneaking up on me, bad idea. If you're not careful, I might Force push you into or through a wall." he said, failing to execute the 'bad joke' miserably.

She furrowed her brow and gave him an incredulous look. '_Damn, shes cute when she does that._' he thought.

"Heh, like you could." she said.

"I probably could, actually."

She turned her attention to the engine.

"What are you doing?" she asked.

He pulled his legs out from under the engine, and stood to his full height, standing several centimeters taller than the Togrutan Jedi.

"Lux fried the hyperdrive motivator. I sent Rikhe to steal his ship's motivator, so I can get this beauty working again." he said.

"Why would you do that?"

"Because I intensely dislike him."

"I see."

They stood there awkwardly for a few seconds, before she spoke again.

"Guess what."

"Ooh, My brother moved away?" he asked mockingly.

"No, you get your wish. You're finally leaving this 'rather dreary' place!" she exclaimed, quite obviously excited.

He simply stared at her, completely shocked.

She continued, "That's right, you are transporting Padmé, your mother, your brother, and I to the Republic capitol, Coruscant."

"Well then, I'd better get the ship fixed." he said, just as Rikhe stepped into the engine room.

"Master," he said, "I stole the motivator, and have finished installing it."

Marek smiled. "Rikhe, sometimes I wonder what I would do without you." he said.

He leaned out the doorway, and shouted, "Homer, get this baby prepped for flight!"

Hope you all liked it. I'm still looking for a good Sith name, but I'm leaning in the direction of Darth Malus. If you've read this, you should know I've revamped the first chapter, and I strongly recommend you go and read it again.

Please review.


	4. Chapter 3: Tacking Into the Wind

Chapter 3

_Tacking Into the Wind_

Darth Sidious, or as he was more commonly known, Chancellor Ezekiel Palpatine, stared down at the the clone intelligence report from the outer rim. It was nothing he did not already know, having orchestated the movements of both sides, but he found it amusing read how long it took for these puny minded fools to figure these things out. Then something crossed his mind. Not a thought, but a feeling from the Dark Side. Skywalker's padawan was experiencing conflicted thoughts.

Anger.

Fear.

Hate.

Chief among them, doubt. Doubt in the righteousness of those pathetic Jedi fools. He smiled wickedly, and immersed himself in the Dark Side, entering her mind, seeing through her eyes. She was on a ship, staring down at a white haired boy beneath an engine. Confused emotions flowed through her like a river, but one caught his eyes in particular.

"Love?"

His smile only grew when he felt her potential.

He cackled evilly.

Perhaps a change in plans was due.

...oOo...

"As of this moment, the Jedi are in control of the Republic. All citizens are ordered to return to their homes. Anyone who resists will be killed. Martial law is in effect."

Ahsoka looked around the streets of Coruscant, and saw flames. All around her, flames. It seemed as if the _entire _city planet was aflame. She took a few steps forward, but was stopped by a figure dressed in long tan robes.

"You have been ordered to return to your residence. Obey or be killed." the figure said.

"Where am I?" she asked, in a voice not her own. She looked down, and found her features to be human.

She hardly expected what came next. The Jedi drew a green lightsaber, and took a swing at her. She attempted to dodge the blade, but found her body completely incapable of moving, paralyzed with fear. The next thing she knew, her left arm was a stump. The Jedi stuck out his hand, and she went flying into the fire, where she too was set aflame. She clenched her eyes shut and screamed as the fire danced across her body. She cracked one eye open just a bit, and saw the Jedi pull back his hood.

It was Marek.

...oOo...

Ahsoka leapt out of her bed, covered in a cold sweat. She checked her left arm, making sure it had all been a dream. She let out the breath she hadn't realized she'd been holding as she saw the orange limb right where it belonged.

"Was it really all a dream?" she whispered.

The door suddenly slammed open, and Marek leapt in, active lightsaber in hand.

"What's wrong?" he asked loudly.

"What do you mean?"

"I heard you screaming."

She dropped her gaze from his, staring at her feet.

"I had a dream. A bad dream." she said.

He deactivated his blade and sat down on the edge of her bed.

"What about?"

She returned her gaze to meet his.

"Pain, suffering," her expression darkened. "Death."

He shifted slightly to face her directly.

"My Master taught me about those. You're having visions." he said.

She shifted her body into a sitting position.

"Mine as well. But this wasn't like what he described as an average vision. It seemed different somehow, like it could actually happen."

"Forewarning." he stated.

"What?"

"A premonition. You're seeing the future."

She scowled, and dropped her gaze.

"I sure hope not."

...oOo...

Aside from bursting through Ahsoka's door the previous night, Marek had gotten a remarkably good sleep, for an insomniac. A whole six hours. He yawned, and hopped out from under the covers of his bed.

"Good morning, Raxus."

He opened the door to the refresher that was adjoined to his room. He stepped up to the toilet, but was obviously not fully awake yet, as he fell through the hole in the floor he had created the previous day.

He blinked, and caught himself three floors down. He found himself in what he assumed was a small storage space, but was proven wrong when the door opened, and Ahsoka stood there completely naked.

She shrieked, as she quickly covered herself with a towel. "Marek, why are you in my shower?" she yelled.

He opened and closed his mouth a few times, before asking, "I'm in your shower?"

She nodded quickly.

"Sorry, Ahsoka, but I might have broken your shower a bit yesterday in my not-so-free fall." he stated, with a vacant look in his eyes.

"Then where do I go to shower?"

He shrugged. "You could use Padmé's." he suggested.

She closed her eyes for a moment, before saying, "She's in her shower."

He looked down and thought for a moment.

"You could use mine." he said.

A moment later, he realized _what_ he had said, and felt heat rush to his face. Apparently, Ahsoka had had the same realization, as she stood there awkwardly, holding a towel over her body, with a boy in nothing but a pair of undershorts in her shower.

"I guess." she said quietly.

"Splendid." he exclaimed, slapping his hands together. "Now, in you just jump up this hole, you should arrive in my 'fresher." he said, brushing past her as he made for the door.

"Oh, and Marek," she said.

"Yes?"

"Thanks for last night."

He smiled. "No problem. Just shout if you need anything."

And with that, he stepped out of the room, only to be met by the last person he wanted to see, Lux.

"What do you want?" he asked harshly.

"Oh, nothing. I was just wondering when we're leaving."

"When I'm ready to go, okay? Be patient."

A haughty look came across the older boy's face, and he said, "I have mastered the art of patience. Remember, I am a politician."

"More like an arrogant fool." Marek remarked.

"Excuse me?" Lux asked, putting on what he thought was an intimidating glare. "Last I checked, I have a ship too, and it wouldn't take a lot to convince dearest mother to leave you here."

Marek took a step closer, and raised a finger to point threateningly at his brother.

"I haven't been offworld in years. You won't take this away from me." he spat vehemently.

Lux smiled. "Then I suggest you be more respectful to your elders." he said, "Oh, and remember what I said about the Jedi? That still applies."

Marek scowled, and backed off. "I can't help it. It's like the Force draws me to her like a magnet. I can't escape her."

Lux narrowed his eyes, and leaned in closer.

"Find a way."

That said, the eldest of the two turned and retreated down the hallway.

...oOo...

Nearly two hours later, Ahsoka vacated Marek's shower.

"Thanks, I needed that." she said.

"No problem. You take _really_ long showers, you know that?"

Since Marek had had that lovely conversation with Lux, he had managed to get dressed. He wore a black long sleeved shirt with a combat vest over top, and pants of the same style. He had also holstered a blaster pistol on his utility belt.

"Is the ship ready?" she asked.

"Its been ready since yesterday. I've only said otherwise to irritate Lux."

"I understand that he isn't the best brother ever, but why do you attack him so unrelentingly?"

"That fool has gone out of his way to ruin my life. I used to have a whole bunch of friends. Now all I have is Rikhe and Homer. Droids." he replied sadly.

"Well, we're friends, aren't we?" she asked, a hopeful look in her eyes, as if there was any doubt that he felt anything but to friendship toward her.

'_More than just friends, I hope. Someday._' they both thought.

"Yeah, yeah we are." he said, a far-off look about him.

"You seem distant, Marek. What's wrong?" she asked.

"Nothing."

"You helped me with my problems last night, now I'm going to help you with yours."

"I have to meet my Master in the communications room." he said, and ran off.

'_What's he hiding?_' she asked herself silently.

...oOo...

Marek entered his private communication/meditation chamber, and locked the door. Moving to the terminal in the center, he tapped in the comm frequency of Count Dooku's starship, and started transmitting a signal. Moments later, a hologram of the sixty seven year old man appeared. Marek bowed in respect.

"Rise, my friend." Dooku said.

"Thank you, Master."

Marek rose to his full height, and faced his Master.

"You seem troubled, my young apprentice. What causes this to be so?"

"Nothing, Master."

"Come, come, Marek. I know you better than that. What troubles you?"

Marek fidgeted slightly, and decided to tell the truth.

"I'm developing... feelings toward another." he said, his gaze drifting to the floor.

"What sort of feelings?"

"Errr... feelings of the romantic sort." he said quietly.

"Ahh, indeed. I sense this now. Love is not the way of the Dark Side, Marek. You must let go of these feelings if you are to become a true Sith."

Marek's eyes suddenly snapped up and locked on to Dooku's. "I am not a pawn of the Dark Side! You train me only to control my power, Dooku, and you _certainly_ don't have any power over _my _feelings!" he snapped, foregoing all respect.

They stood there, simply glaring at each other. Finally, Dooku spoke.

"...So be it."

Then the transmission died, and left Marek furious. He drew his lightsaber and activated the blade, preparing to slash the holoprojector, when the door burst open.

"Marek, stop!" Ahsoka yelled.

"Why should I?" he yelled in return.

"I heard your conversation." she said.

"How much?" he asked, now quite concerned.

"Just the end of it."

"Oh, good." he sighed in relief.

"What do you mean, 'Oh, good'? You just pissed off the leader of the Separatist movement! I don't know much about Raxian customs, but, where I come from, that's considered _bad._" she shouted, completely hysterical.

"I don't mean to anger you, but I can't tell you."

"Why not?"

"Because I... Never mind. I'm firing up the ship. You'd better get there."

He clipped his weapon to his belt and stalked out of the room.

...oOo...

"Master, the time to enact the final stage of the plan draws near." Count Dooku, or as he was known by his Master, Lord Tyranus, stated.

Immediately after his exchange with his apprentice, Dooku had been hailed by his Master. Now, he knelt before the hologram of a cowled elderly man.

"I know, my friend. However, there has been a slight change in the plan."

"What sort of change?"

"I have sensed greater potential in the Dark Side."

"What do you intend to do, my Lord?"

Sidious smiled. "Leave the details to me."

"And in the meantime?"

"Proceed as planned."

"What shall I do about the peace arrangement? A delegate is already on her way."

"Order General Grievous to deploy the high security infiltrators on Coruscant. Perhaps a little bloodshed will be good for the war."

"As you wish, Master. What of my apprentice? He is on his way to Coruscant."

"This, I know. He will be dealt with for us."

"Very well, Master."

"Contact me only in the most dire of circumstances."

"Yes, Master."

...oOo...

Ahsoka, Padmé, Mina, and Lux all seated themselves in the passenger compartment aboard the _Aeon_. Marek stalked in from the engine room, and hit the control for the door to the cockpit. He entered without a word, and Ahsoka looked over at Padmé. A moment later, Mareks voice sounded over the intercom.

"Ladies, gentlemen, and annoying brothers, welcome aboard the _Aeon_. I am obligated to say that it is a pleasure to have you all aboard. Now I am about to outline the safety features, or lack thereof, of this spacecraft. In the event of an emergency, please make your way to the nearest airlock, and empty the contents of your stomach _there_. In the likely event that the ship blows up mid flight, do nothing, as you will be dead. And, finally, in the also likely event that the Republic betrays us, please be prepared to be given away in exchange for my own freedom. Now, ladies and gentlemen and annoying brothers, we are about to depart. Now would also be a good time to put your head between your legs, and kiss your ass goodbye."

The ship lurched, and the audible whine of repulsor engines could be heard. Ahsoka and Padmé exchanged a worried glance, as they were slammed back into their seats.

"Calm down." Lux shouted over the noise, "I'll never admit it to him, but this ship is pretty solid."

...oOo...

In the cockpit, Marek smiled. Unbeknownst to Lux, there were security cams all over that particular room.

"Homer, program the navicomputer." he said.

The meter tall, stark white droid jacked itself into a control panel to the left of the pilot's chair, which Marek currently occupied.

"Rikhe, adjust exit vector by point seven degrees, y axis."

"Yes, Master."

The double pronged starship shook slightly as it finally exited the Raxian atmosphere, and Marek sighed in relief.

"Oh, yeah. She's still got it."

"I do beg your pardon, Master, but who's still got what?"

"How about you shut down for a while, eh Rikhe?"

"I don't see why not."

The droids yellow photoreceptors faded to black, and the droid shut itself down in the navigator's seat. The door opened, and Ahsoka stepped in.

...oOo...

"I thought I said to stay in the cabin." Marek said, his eyes still on the forward viewport.

"You did."

"...So? Why aren't you in the cabin?"

"I couldn't stand listening to Lux boasting anymore."

"Understandable."

"So, what's happening up here."

"Oh, a smidgeon of this, and a pinch of that." Marek replied with a grin.

Homer tweedled, signifying that the coordinants for Coruscant had been locked.

"Engaging hyperdrive." Marek stated, pulling a lever toward him.

Through the viewport, she could see all the stars give the illusion of elongating, as the _Aeon_ was launched into the tunnels of hyperspace. Marek released the control sticks, and sat back in his chair.

"So, who can I expect to meet us at the landing platform?" he asked.

"Well, about a dozen Senators, Chancellor Palpatine, Masters Yoda, Windu, and probably Master Kenobi as well. As well, I think my Master will be there." she replied.

"Who is your Master?" he asked.

"Anakin Skywalker."

"What? You have connections to Skywalker?"

"Yes, why do you ask?"

His expression darkened.

"He killed my father."

Her skin went white, which was saying a lot, considering her skin was normally orange.

"Oh..." she couldn't really think of what to say next. An understandable thing, considering she'd just found out that the person she'd learned everything from, the one with whom she confided her secrets, had killed the father of the boy she was falling for.

'_Falling for him..._' she thought, '_When did that happen_?'

They sat there in silence for a long time. Her senses told her at least two hours.

"My Master has a very black and white view of the war. He truly does think that every member of the Separatist movement is-"

"What, evil?" He yelled.

"...Yes."

"Am I evil? No. Was my father evil? Man, _hell_ no!"

She couldn't really think of anything to say.

She rose, kissed his cheek again, and said, "I'm sorry."

She stepped through the bulkhead into the cabin.

He slammed his fist into a control panel, cracking it.

"AAAAGH!" the sound resonated through the ship, sending a chill up all of the other occupants' spines.

Enjoying it, yet? I am. things are starting to heat up, and Ahsoka is baffled by doubt.

I haven't written the next chapter yet, so if you want something added, send me a review and I'll write it in.

Thank you to:

alienvspredator5

darth cirus

Starwarschip

Christina

MetalGearJedi

Lindsay

DarkWriter6

Thanks for all the great review. it makes me hjappy to get revies, so write plenty!


	5. Chapter 4: Another Happy Landing

Chapter 4

_Another Happy Landing_

"Dummy! Weirdo! Freak!" they all shouted, laughing.

"I'm not a freak!" he yelled back, teetering on the edge of tears.

They laughed. Life is hard for eight year olds.

_Especially_ for Marek Bonteri.

One of them, Trenton Golk, stalked up to him and gave him a shove. The ones behind him kept him from falling down and pushed him back at Trenton. Trenton hit him, hard. A slap on the head. Marek cried.

He got hit again.

Anger rose.

Again.

Rage built.

Trenton reared back to hit him again, but Marek brought his hand up, curled like a claw.

Trenton stopped, as did the flow of air into his lungs. He started to choke, letting out hacking sounds.

Marek rose to his feet, slowly curling his hand into a fist.

The choking stopped.

Trenton was floating two solid feet off the ground, clutching his throat, his airway completely blocked, desperate for a single breath of air.

"Marek!" he heard someone say forcefully, "Let him go!"

He lowered his hand, and released the constricting energy around the bully's neck. The kids all backed away in fear.

Marek realized what he had done, and cried. His father picked him up and carried him away, trying to comfort him.

Later that night, he heard his parents arguing.

"He nearly _killed_ that child, Bron! I don't care what you say, I'm pulling him out of everything. If he's going to have any sort of education, it'll come from you!"

"Mina..." his father pleaded feebly.

"No, Bron. I will _not_ let this child hurt the Bonteri name any further."

"So you'll just let Lux go gallivanting off to Force knows where when he may have the same abilities?"

"Lux has proven himself to be reliable. Perhaps, someday Marek will too." with that, she left, leaving a disgusted husband, a cackling favorite child, and a sobbing outcast.

...oOo...

Marek woke with an ache in his heart. He hadn't dreamt of his father in a long time, but it still hurt. He sat up on his makeshift bed of storage crates and sheets.

"Nope," he groaned, pressing his palms against his aching back, "That's what hurts."

There were only four small cabins aboard the _Aeon_, so he'd given his room to Ahsoka and set up a bed in the cargo hold. Apparently, however, sleeping on metal didn't agree with him. The wall comm was flashing, so he rose and hit the broadcaster.

"What's going on up there?"

"Marek, this is Ahsoka. I need to talk to you."

He sighed. "On my way."

Taking his thumb off the button, he strode through the door and into the corridor outside. He took left, then a right and stopped three doors down.

"Ahsoka," he called through the door, "I'm outside."

"Good. Come in, please."

Shrugging, he raised his thumb to the door lock control and punched in the appropriate combination. The door slid open, and he walked in. Ahsoka gestured for him to sit down beside her on the bed.

"I wanted to ask you what you'e going to do at the landing platform." she said.

He looked her in the eyes and sighed.

"I don't know. I was very close with my father, and to meet his killer... If you want me to act calmly, I'll act calmly."

She didn't seem very convinced.

He threw his hands up in the air, giving a shrug.

"You don't believe me? Fine, I'll prove you wrong."

With that, he got up and left for the cockpit.

...oOo...

She felt a shadow of anger at him for just walking out on her like that. She wanted to have a civilised talk with him, not drive him away. She sighed, getting up out of the bed and stripping off her sleepwear. She thought about her situation as she reached over to grab her leggings. She'd accompanied a Senator on a dangerous mission of peace to the heart of the Confederacy, damn near fallen in love with their contact's aberrant son, ended up escorting said people back to the Republic capitol, and who knows what sorts of punishments awaited her back at the Temple.

'Karking punishments, I've helped bring peace back to the galaxy, and I'm going to be reprimanded for it!' she thought angrily.

She pulled her shirt under her headtails, put her arms through the holes, and fastened it at the small of her back.

'And Marek, don't even think about the punishment you'll get for _this_. Falling in love with a Seppie. Ha!'

She couldn't deny it though.

She was unexplainably in love with that withdrawn boy.

Force be damned if she could figure out why, though.

She fastened her leather vambraces to her arms and placed her comlink on the left one.

'What will Skyguy think?'

Her Master would not be pleased once he found out about her feelings.

Last but not least, she connected the various pieces of her headdress around her head.

Well, if she got expelled or anything, she could always stay with Marek.

...oOo...

There was a disturbance in the Force. Or more accurately, in the bond between Master and Padawan.

"Snips, what's going on?" Anakin Skywalker asked telepathically.

"I'm just having some difficulty with the whole emotionless automaton thing." she replied, "I may need to talk with someone a bit more sane than you."

The Chancellor waving his wrinkled hand in front of Anakin's eyes.

"My boy, are you alright?" he asked.

"Yeah, just talking with my Padawan. I apologize for the interruption. She seemed troubled." the Jedi Knight replied, his blue eyes gleaming in the Coruscanti sunset.

"Perhaps I can help, if I am permitted to speak with her." Palpatine said, making a 'why not?' gesture with his hand.

"Of course, Chancellor. When she gets back I'll bring her to talk with you."

Beneath the grandfatherly exterior shell of Ezekiel Palpatine, Darth Sidious smiled evilly.

...oOo...

"Coruscant docking control, this is Padawan Ahsoka Tano requesting permission to land at the Senate building." the Togruta Jedi said into the comm unit of the _Aeon_.

"Padawan Tano, please transmit landing codes."

"Authorization Gamma-67-Talus-9011-38."

She could practically hear the gentleman on the other end of the transmission working the code into his computer, checking for any discrepencies in it.

"Clearance granted. Welcome home, Padawan Tano."

The line cut out, and Marek smirked.

"No signs of a trap yet." he said amusedly.

Ahsoka huffed and reclined in the copilot seat.

"My Master knows that I'm onboard. They won't attack, if that's what you're worried about." she said, gesturing to the massive line of Star Destroyers orbiting the planet.

He laughed genuinely, slamming his hand into a console that suddenly went dark. It reactivated.

"What was that?" she asked.

"Life support. Don't worry, it does that sometimes."

She wasn't soothed by that notion, but the fact that he knew how to fix it cheered her up.

The sleek ship darted past the Star Destroyer blockade, making no sudden jerks or threatening gestures. Flames started to lick at the viewport as they penetrated the upper atmosphere. Suddenly, a big warning sign was blaring.

"What's that?" she asked, concerned for their lives.

"Main stabilizers just went out. Not usual, not good." he said calmly, flipping a trio of switches on the panel above him.

"Homer, Rikhe! Get to the engine room and figure out what's wro-"

He was cut off when the combat droid interrupted him.

"The friction from reentry overheated the reverse flux coupler, fusing the main graviton generator to the fuel line." the droid said, not sounding at all concerned.

Ahsoka was scared, she couldn't deny. The speed indicator said that they were moving at about six hundred miles per hour, and gaining speed quickly.

"Ahsoka," Marek finally said, "I need you to help me slow the ship down."

"What? How?" she asked over the noise of the reentry.

"Grab it with the Force, of course."

With that, he shut his eyes and raised his hands in front of him. The ship jerked, but didn't stop. Seeing no alternative, she centered herself in the Force, concentrating on the vessel that encased her and her friends. "Stop!" she commanded in her mind. The ship lurched again, and the flames died a bit. The stress on her mind was unbeatable.

"I can't hold it!" she strained to say.

"You can do it, Ahsoka. Just concentrate."

She kept straining to control it, and nearly lost her grip. Then his words sank in, and she let go of her efforts, concentrating solely on the Force. The ship started to slow more.

"Great Ahsoka, keep going like that. I'm going to start the landing cycle."

His helping hand suddenly disappeared, and she was left to slow the ship on her own. The ship shuddered as the landing gear deployed. She dug deeper into the Force, bending it into a cushion around the ship, slowing it further. She let out a gasp when the _Aeon_ forcefully struck the ground, probably crushing the landing legs. It skidded for several meters before finally coming to a stop just before it hit the wall of the Senate complex.

"Hooh!" she breathed, nearly reaching over and slapping her love interest, who was lauging hysterically.

"Another happy landing!" he said, not bothering to hide his amusement.

...oOo...

Anakin sprinted full speed onto the landing platform. He'd just seen the supposed suicide run on the Senate building. An arrest was in order. The loading ramp slammed down into the ground, and a boy with stark white hair stumbled off, closely followed by a teenage Togruta girl.

"Ahsoka!" he called, running over to the ship.

"Master!" she called back.

"My ass!" the white haired teenager yelled.

Amost immediately, Anakin had his azure blade in hand and at the boy's throat.

"Ah! What are you doing?" he asked loudly.

"Master, he's a friend!" Ahsoka explained, placing a hand on Anakin's arm.

"Can it, Snips. You're in a lot of trouble, too."

"I don't like your attitude." the boy said.

"And? Your point?" the Jedi Knight replied.

Quite abruptly, a lightsaber flew into the boy's hand and batted Anakin's azure blade away.

"Marek, stop!" Ahsoka ordered.

Their blades crossed again, casting a white light across the platform.

"Stop!" both their lightsabers flew into the Togruta's hands, leaving them disarmed.

"Ahsoka, give me my lightsaber." Anakin ordered, struggling to suppress his anger.

"If you're just going to fight one of the diplomat's sons, then why should I?"

"He's a Sith assassin, give me my lightsaber!"

Marek laughed. "That's all you Jedi can comprehend, right? The Dark and the Light, like there's nothing in between? Well, guess what, I'm not a Sith. I'm not a Jedi. I don't belong to some karking Order, because I physically _can't_ choose a side!"

Anakin was confused. "Snips, what's he saying?"

"He's not a Sith assassin, Master. He's just an Adept. Somewhere in the middle."

Anakin relaxed slightly. "There isn't anything in between, Ahsoka. You're either good, or evil."

"You preach that the Jedi are good, yet you kill so many innocents in your war for control of the galaxy. Everything you're saying is a contradiction."

"The Jedi didn't start the war, the Sith did. We're fighting for freedom."

"The Jedi _did_ start the war, however indirectly."

"How so?"

"The Jedi are a part of the Rebublic, in some sort of twisted, convoluted way. There's no other way to look at it. Since the Republic was the one who wouldn't let the Separatist systems simply secede from your government, you started the war. The fact that the Jedi _lead_ the war effort only solidifies the fact that you _support_ the war."

...oOo...

Ahsoka could see valid points in Marek's argument. Had the Republic simply allowed the Seppies to leave, would the war not have happened? Had the Jedi not gone to Geonosis with the Clones, could billions of deaths have been prevented? There was no easy answer.

"The Separatists are evil! They have to be, they're led by a Sith!" Anakin practically screamed.

"The Sith are no more at fault than the Jedi!"

"If you're not a Sith, why are you defending them?"

"Because I believe in not judging people on first appearances. I don't know the Sith or Jedi ways well enough to make an absolute statement."

That rang true like a bell. It was always important to keep an open mind, something she sometimes forgot to do. Several Clones rushed onto the deck, blasters trained on the rebellious teenager.

"Put this kid in binders." Anakin ordered one of the red and white armored troopers.

The trooper got no argument from Marek, who simply fumed, the Force swirling around him. But, true to his word, he restrained himself. She stepped up to him just before the troopers led him away.

"I'll have you out of the can in no time, okay?"

He didn't respond, simply looked forward as the troopers led him away. With that over with, Ahsoka handed Anakin his lightsaber.

"Don't test my authority like that again, Snips!" he snapped, pointing at her with the pommel.

She clipped Marek's lightsaber to her belt just as the Senators and Senator-in-training stepped off the boarding ramp.

"Well," Mina said, "Now that that's over with, I would like to speak to Chancellor Palpatine immediately, to begin the peace talks."

Skywalker kept is lightsaber in hand, gesturing for the trio to follow them. Ahsoka stayed behind, looking up at the damaged _Aeon_, as if waiting for the answer to life's hardships to come flying out of the forward torpedo tubes.

"Why _are_ we enemies with the Sith?" she asked herself quietly, "We're not all that different."

She shrugged again, before giving chase to her Master.

**I hope you all liked, and again, I'm sorry for the horribly slow updates.**

**Review if you liked it.**


	6. Chapter 5: 'I Want to Break Free'

Chapter 5

_'I Want to Break Free'_

She'd said she'd get him out in no time. She'd said that it would be short.

But no.

After _six months_ in solitary confinement, Marek Bonteri was ready to go mad.

He'd tried everything from mind-tricking the guard into letting him out, to blasting the door open with the Force. That had only gotten him and Ysalamiri in the floor.

The last time someone had come to see him, five and a half months ago, had been when Padmé had given him the news report that the peace talks had failed with the death of his mother.

A tear had fallen that day, but just one.

Now, he only desired freedom, so that he could exact revenge on whoever had orphaned him.

He longed for release, for freedom.

He longed for Ahsoka, for her warm touch.

He'd had a long time to think over his short time with the Jedi Padawan, and he'd come to a conclusion. He was interested in her romantically. However much time it had taken, he had no doubt in his mind that if not for Ahsoka, he would have never been cleared for release.

Life as a convict; not very appealing.

Well, not to the occupant of the dark cell it wasn't.

_'Release...'_ the word bounced around in his head for a few minutes, minutes that felt like they were hours.

Freedom.

He'd finally come to appreciate that he'd never _truly_ been imprisoned at his mother's estate. Only chained.

His heart pounded in his ears a light year a second as the Clone troopers opened the reinforced durasteel doors and stood him up roughly.

"Seppie scum..." he heard one of them mutter.

He was finally being released.

Then he remembered an obstacle that stood in his way to getting Ahsoka. A daunting obstacle, to be sure.

Her Master.

As soon as he got his lightsaber back, there would be Sith hell to pay, and it was directed at that karking sleemo, _Skywalker_.

Ohhh, there would be blood.

...oOo...

It was finally time. Time for Marek to be released, that is.

Over the past six months, the more Ahsoka'd thought about it, the more she realized that it wasn't her fault. He'd been confrontational, and it had gotten him canned.

Granted, she'd played a part in it.

Her hands drifted to rest on where her lightsabers were clipped to her belt. Her left hand rested on the pommel of her saber, and her right hand hit Marek's lightsaber. Her shoto had been destroyed three months prior, sliced in half by Ventress. She'd used Marek's ever since. She'd carried it fondly since the incident with the reentry, and it only made her miss him more.

At least he'd had time to calm down.

But no, it had been six months without sentient contact, and an Ysalamiri in the floor. It wouldn't surprise her if he hated her for it. She'd promised to get him out, and she'd failed until that week. She'd been speaking to her unlikely friend, Chancellor Palpatine, about Marek, and he'd offered to reevaluate his case. He'd deemed it enough punishment for a teenage boy's accident. She was excited to see him, to hear his voice, to-

No.

Keep to the Code, she kept telling herself, but it was futile.

Her feelings for him had only _grown_.

But, no matter what, she would be at the prison at twenty one hundred hours, when he walked through the gates.

She would take her feelings to her grave, though.

...oOo...

It was night time, but the light from traffic felt like a spear to Marek's head. His room had been dark most of the time, with dim luminescent walls. The Force inhibiting lizard he'd been trapped with was slung over one of his shoulders, preventing him from lashing out at the Clone troopers. The shock binders on his wrists were also a bit of a problem. The doors finally opened fully, and the former convict stepped out into the cool, fresh air of Coruscant.

Ahsoka was standing near a speeder at the end of the platform, along with two other people.

One, he could identify as that worm, Skywalker.

The other was unfamiliar.

The Ysalamiri was pulled from his shoulder and away from him.

For the first time in months, the Force flooded his body like an energizing river. He gasped quietly, just letting it flow through him.

He looked inwards, taking note of his bodily changes. He'd lost at least twenty pounds worth of weight, and he'd certainly need to start lifting weights again. His arms felt like flimsiplast. In fact, there wasn't a part of him that wasn't in the shape it was before prison. He also noted that his stark white hair had grown down to his neck, becoming somewhat wavy.

Collecting himself and putting on an expression of neutrality, he strode to Ahsoka.

"I don't know if your chrono is broken, but six months isn't 'no time'." he said, making little quotation marks with his fingers.

She sighed.

"I guess a thank you would be too much to ask?"

He hesitated for a moment, before yielding, "Thanks."

She stared at him for a moment, before seemng to come to a realization.

"Oh, this is yours."

She reached to her side, but Skywalker grabbed her arm.

"You think that's wise, Ahsoka?" he asked.

"He won't hurt us, Master." she replied

"Won't hurt _you_," Marek added, looking to her, before gesturing to Skywalker, "Him, I want to skin."

She didn't seem phased, and handed him his lightsaber.

"Wow, never thought I'd see this thing again." he commented, igniting the aqua blade.

He waved it around a bit, but quickly deactivated it. His strength and skill had definitely been diminished. The gyroscopic effect created by the plasma was exhausting him.

"Well, I'm glad we've settled all this." said the other man, "Now, I don't believe we've been introduced. I am Obi-Wan Kenobi."

He held out his hand, and Marek clasped it, shaking it curtly.

"Marek Bonteri." the teenager replied.

"Bonteri... Oh, yes. My condolences for the loss of your mother."

"Thank you, Master Kenobi." Marek replied quietly, his gaze not meeting the other man's.

Ahsoka immediately enclosed his right hand between hers.

"I know you weren't close, but it must still hurt. I'm really sorry." she condoled, looking straight at him.

"Thanks, Ahsoka."

No one spoke for a moment, and silence ruled. The chaos of traffic moved along as the four Force users stood there, trying to think of what to say.

"We should get back to the Temple, Obi-Wan." Skywalker said, before turning to Marek, "The Council would like to meet you in the morning, and I'm assuming that you'd enjoy the comfort of a place as serene as the Jedi Temple."

A glare that could burn through quadanium steel shot from the emerald eyes of the teenager, directed at Skywalker.

"Fine."

With that, he walked slowly to the speeder behind the group, getting into the backseat with Ahsoka beside him. It rose into the air, and shot off, making for the last place in the galaxy an apprentice of Count Dooku would ever want to go.

...oOo...

Sunlight bathed his face, pouring through the blinds in his quarters as he woke, stretching his arms and legs out with a groan.

He cracked an eyelid, blowing his loose white hair out of his eye, and looked out the window. The sky was blue, the sun, a brilliant yellow-white, and the city, a shining silver. He looked over at the chrono beside his bed.

"Oh, no way!" he exclaimed in disbelief.

It read oh seven thirty two. He sat up, letting the blanket cascade down his bare chest, and took in his surroundings. The roof was slightly bowled upward, a pillar protruding from the center that stretched down to the floor. The chest at the foot of his bed not only had his lightsaber on it, but also had what looked like flat grey Jedi robes on top of it.

Only then did he realise that his clothes had probably been torched when he was arrested. Then, he remembered two things simultaneously. Both, vitally important, both, extremely pressing.

One, where in Sith hell were Rikhe and Homer?

And two, he was ravenously hungry.

Calling the clothes to his prosthetic hand with the Force, with which he was still shaky, the white haired boy examined them. Similar to Kenobi's robes, but more tight fitting. He chuckled lightly, tossing the longer sleeved tunic across the room, and into what he hoped was a trash chute. Then, he put on what was left. The darker short sleeved shirt was mostly covered by the sleeveless over-tunic, but the sleeves hung out down to his elbows. The pants were loose, but not too loose, tucking into his black combat-style boots a few inches below the knee. The belt, a nice black leather, he fastened around his waist, but it was big enough that it fell to hang loosely around his hips. Last, but not least, he clipped his lightsaber to his belt and pulled a lock of hair away from his eye, and behind his ear. To no avail, the annoying bang just fell over his left eye every time he pulled it back and hooked it behind his ear.

Just as he exited the room, he heard an annoying, high pitched beeping sound from behind him. He turned to investigate, and found a Jedi comlink.

"Bonteri, here." he said, pressing the flashing green button.

"Hey, Marek," came the jovial voice of Ahsoka, "How are you this morning?"

"Well, I'm not in a cell."

"Oh, come on. Is it really _that_ bad? Do you at least like the robes?"

"That was _you_?"

"Yeah, who else would it be?"

"I don't know. Listen, is there a gym or anything here? I'd like to try to get back in the shape I was in before I had a criminal record."

"Uhhh, yeah. Level fourty, east wing. Want to meet up?"

That was unexpected, but pleasant.

"Sure, why not?"

"Okay. I'll meet you there in a few minutes."

"Okay."

The device beeped again, and shut off. He slipped it into one of the three pouches on his belt, and made his way to what he guessed was the east wing.

...oOo...

The hallways were ruled by silence as Ahsoka made her way down to the training gym. She passed a few Jedi on her way, but payed them no heed. They were all spouting the Code to the apprentices that walked beside them.

It made no sense, in her opinion. The Code was just something that the Jedi hid behind so that they could claim neutrality in all things.

It made her mad - furious, even - whenever she reminded herself of the other Jedi's short-sightedness.

She huffed, stepping through the threshold of the large training area. A moment later, she saw Marek enter through a door on the opposite side of the room. Smiling, she waved. He reciprocated, and her heart fluttered. Normally, she wasn't one to act girly, but it felt good, so she would allow it.

Just this once, though.

"Hi." he said, rubbing the back of his neck.

He was nervous. Odd.

"So, ummmm... yeah. What's up?" he asked awkwardly.

She giggled.

_She GIGGLED_?

"Just the usual. Get up, work up a sweat, eat lunch, all that stuff." she replied, mentally slapping herself.

She grabbed his arm and dragged him over to a group of manual machines that were hooked up to some pretty serious weight.

"Get to it. We've only got two hours before the Council wants to see you." she sat down on a chair and started to pull on thick wires, lifting a weight in the process.

She registered Marek placing metal discs on a rod, lie down underneath it, and start pumping it up and down. After ten minutes, sweat was dripping down both their brows, and exhaustion snaked it's way into her arms. Marek was still going at a steady pace, obviously feeling stronger by the second. From what she could tell, he was lifting just shy of two hundred; a little more than what she, herself was lifting. She would _not_ be outdone by a boy, even if it was Marek. To add to the humiliation, he'd been in a soft room, with no exercise, for six months, while she'd been out there, slicing battle droids to pieces, and running around tough terrain.

By all logic, she should have completed at least three times the reps he'd accomplished when they reached the half hour point. They both glistened with sweat, breathing heavily. Just as she thought she was going to collapsed, Marek hooked the barbell to the table supports above him, and sat up. She let go of the grips on the ends of the wires, snapping them back into the machine with a loud _clang_.

"Hoooh, I needed that." he said, panting lightly.

"Yeah, but how did you get more done than me? You've been in prison the last six months!"

"I just have massive skills."

An awkward silence followed.

"We still have about an hour. Would you care for a duel?" she asked, reaching for her lightsaber.

"You bet! But, I might be a bit off my game."

"That's fine. I'll go easy on you." she goaded, poking him in the chest.

"Don't you _dare_." he poked back.

And with that, the two unlikely friends left the training area, headed for a duelling chamber.

**Thank you to those who reviewed the last few chapters.**

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**I hope you liked this one, all in all. Kind of a filler, though. The next one will probably be a filler, too. **

**By the way, I need votes on my poll, so give it a look. It's a good story, I'm just not sure I should post it.**

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	7. Chapter 6: Forbidden Emotion

Chapter 6

_Forbidden Emotion_

Marek sprinted as fast as he could through the corridors of the Temple, carefully avoiding any Jedi he came across, as he tried desperately to stay ahead of Ahsoka.

"You slow Hutt!" he cried joyfully, making a Force assisted leap onto a wall as he turned a corner.

"You cheating murglak!" she countered.

"Hey!"

There it was, straight ahead, about a hundred meters. One foot in front of the other, left, right, left, right, run, run, run!

He had ten meters to go when an orange blur flipped over his head, slamming into the door. When he arrived, Ahsoka stood there, a smug look plastered on her face.

"You cheat." he muttered, pushing her past the doorway and into the moderately sized circular chamber.

Her lightsaber shot into her hand, it's green blade casting an eery glow across the room. He blasted his aqua blade into place to block her initial strike, before pivoting on his heel and throwing the blade behind him to parry the next one.

"You cheated first!" she grunted, striking overhead.

He blocked all of her strikes, switching the saber between reverse and standard grips, between hand and prosthetic, throwing in attacks where he could, trying to overcome the exhaustion seeping into his body. Any observer would only have seen a pair of blurred lights smashing against each other before pivoting in wide arcs and striking each other again. Even exhausted, he could match her, and that gave him some hope that he'd be able to convince the Jedi to let him fight. Ahsoka had told him that the news reports were lying, that Mina had been killed by Dooku's thugs, not Republic officers.

Rage had burned, and Anakin's speeder had gotten an impressive fist-shaped dent in the side.

Swinging the blade around his body, he blocked over his head, countering with a series of slashes and stabs, before springing off his left foot, flipping over her head and striking at the same time. She swept her leg out as he landed, tripping him and causing his grip to fail. His lightsaber clattered to the floor as he did a backward handspring with he blow.

He reached out his flesh hand, and his saber came flying toward it.

But, it was intercepted by Ahsoka's free hand. She ignited the blade and struck, striking out with her impressive knowledge of Jar'Kai. Marek ducked, rolling between her legs and grabbing her shoulders. Ahsoka flipped her grips on the two sabers, giving him a need to spring over her shoulders on his hands, landing in front of her.

She tripped him again, but he was ready this time. Just as her foot disconnected his from the floor, he kicked out, knocking her over as well. He ripped the lightsabers from her hands with the Force, and landed hard on his back.

Then she landed face-down on top of him.

The both scrambled apart quickly, Marek's face red, Ahsoka's lekku chevrons black.

"Uhh, sorry." she mumbled.

"Yeah. Ditto."

Awkward silence. Again.

"Tired?" she asked, her hands clamped together behind her back.

"Yeah, a bit."

"We've still got an hour 'til your meeting, you want to head back?"

"Not really. I'm tired, but not _that _tired."

She reached over and grabbed his hand. "Come. The mess hall in serving omelettes!"

"What the hell is an omelette?" he demanded, yanking his hand back as she started to walk away.

"It's some sort of egg thing. Some kid named Zayne discovered then on Naboo a while back. They're _really_ good!"

"They'd have to be, to get someone as hysterical as you."

"Oh, please. You've never seen me hysterical. According to my friend Barriss, I get scary." her voice got low, her gaze narrowing as one of her eyebrows rose.

"Well," Marek replied, yanking her a bit closer, "I _like_ scary."

His fingers traced her face as she formulated a reply.

"You _like_ it, huh? I guess I'll just have to get even crazier."

"Crazier? I like the sound of that." he clasped his hands together behind her waist, bringing he two teenager's faces within a few inches of each other.

What came next was unexpected, even under those circumstances.

She grabbed both sides of his head and crushed his lips against hers in a passionate kiss.

...oOo...

Something had shifted again.

Tano's feelings were reciprocated, it seemed, but that would only make his task even easier.

Sidious, standing at the center of the Grand Convocation chamber, smiled.

_Too _easy.

It was time to rid himself of Dooku.

Everything was slowly falling into place.

...oOo...

On the other side of the Temple, Skywalker stopped midstep.

"Ohhhhhhh, crap." he muttered, sensing what his apprentice was feeling.

...oOo...

Later, in the Council chamber, Marek stood in the center, being stared down by the twelve most powerful Masters in the Jedi Order.

"Hmmm, Dooku's apprentice, you are?" asked the small green one, Ahsoka had called him Yoda.

"_Was_." he corrected, "After what that bastard did to my family, I'll kill him."

"Please, control your language, Mr. Bonteri." an older Togruta said.

"I apologize."

"Are you Sith?" asked the dark skinned man beside Yoda, Master Windu.

"No."

They all fell silent, contemplative looks crossing their faces.

"I sense the truth." the Cerean Master remarked.

"He is not an average Force user..." said Master Kenobi, "I sense... balance."

"Tilted slightly toward Darkness, but balance." Windu replied.

"An intersection in the Force like no other." the Togruta said with wonder.

"Meant to keep the balance, he is." Yoda stated, waving his hand out to Marek.

He felt the Light side flare inside of himself, only to be involuntarily crushed down to par with the Darker part of his power.

Yoda's eyes snapped open.

"Meant to help Skywalker in achieving his destiny, he is."

"Whoa, whoa, whoa, I'm not helping Skywalker with anything!" he shook his head defensively, causing a curtain of his hair to fall over his eyes.

"And why, might I ask, do you say that?" Kenobi asked.

"Because... because he killed my dad, and that is something I will never forgive him for."

"It matters not." the Cerean remarked, "What is he, Master Yoda?"

"Believe, I do, that Padawan Tano's identification, correct, it is. An Adept, he is."

"Were either of your parents Force sensitive, Mr. Bonteri?" Windu asked, pressing his fingers together.

"...No. Neither is my brother."

"Strange, it is, for one so powerful to be born from Force blind people."

Well, not _entirely_ Force blind. I'm assuming you've heard of the Sith Lord Darth Saj, and the Jedi Master Fleres Topriatsta?"

"The two who betrayed their respectve Orders after they fell in love, correct?"

"Yes. They are ancient predecessors of the Bonteri family on my father's side. Is it possible that the sensitivity skipped a few generations?"

"Three thousand years is _hardly_ a few generations." the Togruta commented, "And no. It would not have remained dormant so long."

The Adept cupped his chin, his thoughts drifting everywhere. Then he remembered why he'd agreed to have the meeting.

"Well, Master Shaak, what do you thi-" I cut Kenobi off.

"Let me fight in the war."

If he'd thought that a jaw couldn't fall below it's hinge, he was wrong. Their jaws dropped to the floor.

"Excuse me?"

"I don't care about your political views. I only want to see Dooku dead. If I have to fight with the Jedi to see that, I'm willing to do it." he stated, standing up a little straighter.

"Strong, your lust for revenge is. Despite this, allow you to fight, I will." Yoda said after a moment.

"Master Yoda!" a Mirialan exclaimed, "He is a Separatist. He is simply trying to escape our grasp."

"Calm, Master Luminara. I sense no deception in him. He wishes revenge, and he is genuinely prepared to join us to get it." a human woman with a strange headdress said.

The Mirialan grudgingly shut up, and Windu continued for Yoda.

"We won't give you a formal rank until we can ascertain your motives for fighting, but you will be allowed to fight." he said, nodding his head.

"Thank you."

"You are dismissed for now."

The Adept bowed, and left the room. As soon as he entered the turbolift, he jumped for joy.

"I'm coming for you, Dooku. Rest assured, I'm coming to kill you."

...oOo...

Count Dooku, standing on the bridge of Grievous's flagship, the _Invisible Hand_, reflected the message his former apprentice had sent him.

_I'm coming for you, Dooku. Rest assured, I'm coming to kill you._

Then, to top it all off, his Master had sent him the Nexus Route coordinates, a hyperspace lane that lead into the heart of the Republic, ordering him to amass a fleet to attack Coruscant.

Two thousand warships had gathered in the Raxus system, prepared to storm the Republic and kidnap his Master.

Maybe, if he was lucky, his apprentice would be foolish enough to challenge him.

"General," he said, sitting down in the command chair, "You may jump to hyperapace when ready."

The Kaleesh cyborg, simply known as Grievous, bowed.

"Yes, my lord." he turned to the pilot droid, before snapping, "Engage lightspeed!"

...oOo...

The lightsaber glowed aqua, casting a bright light across Marek's face as he stared into the blade, meditating. It emitted no heat, something that Ahsoka had probably done. It used to be hat if he held it too close to he blade emitter, his skin would boil. That was what happened to his left hand, actually.

_"Concentrate, Marek." Dooku advised, standing to the side as he watched a ten year old Marek swing his newly made lightsaber to deflect stinger bolts._

_"Yes, Master."_

_Moving he blade rigidly, he managed to redirect them all away from him. Then, he got an idea that would no doubt impress his Master._

_He tossed the blade into the air, putting a spin on it. He caught it in is left hand, just on the emitter, and angled the blade perfectly, sending the annoying stinger bolt back into the droid that fired it. Dooku clapped slowly, but a look of disappointment was on his face._

_He was confused, until the pain came._

_Marek's hand heated up to the point where it was agonizingly painful. He screamed, looking at his hand, unable to unclench his hand, the pain was so great._

_His skin was bubbling, dripping off to reveal bone underneath._

_He screamed louder, dropping the saber. To his further pain, but later relief, the gyroscope effect of the burning plasma rotated the hilt, swinging the blade as it fell to cleave through the little boy's arm mid-forearm._

_A gut wrenching scream ripped through the air, and Dooku, finally realizing the gravity of the situation, ran to his apprentice._

The skin was still singed around the base of the grey hand. They could make prosthetics that looked exactly like the original limbs, ones that had feeling, but he liked his basic, scarred metal limb. It reminded him that he needed to pay attention to his surroundings, to be careful with his weapon.

Now, with the weapon emitting no heat whatsoever, he needed no reminder.

The blade slid back ino the hilt with a _hiss-fizz_, and the silver cylinder landed in his hand. The weapon had hurt and saved him many times, but he would always cherish it, keep it, even if it was destroyed, he would repair it. He would remake it.

Briefly, he wondered what Ahsoka was doing at that time of night. Probably sleeping, but with her, who knew.

She was spontaneous, passionate, headstrong, reckless, and to be honest, really karking good looking.

Perfect was the only word to describe her.

...oOo...

Little did Marek know Ahsoka was in fact, sleeping _restlessly_. Twisting and rolling under the covers, trying t escape the vision that had gripped her mind.

_There was a group of Jedi in the Chancellor's office, talking with him._

_"The Jedi Order maintains peace, Chancellor, and you disrupt that peace."_

_An azure blade sprang from the leader's hand, piercing Palpatine's chest._

_"You have done well, Skywalker. Now, deal with the boy and your apprentice."_

_"Yes, Master Windu."_

_He left the room, leaving the Jedi to take over the Republic's leadership._

_The vision shifted. She and Marek were kissing in a dark room, when the door opened and azure light spilled in._

_"You are both traitor's to the Jedi, and therefore the Republic."_

_The lightsaber flew from Marek's belt, and Anakin's cleaved through her lover's middle, killing him._

_"NOOOOO!" she screamed, drawin hers and striking._

_Skywalker parried, throwing her blade wide, before stabbing her through the heart with her dead lover's lightsaber._

_"Goodbye, Ahsoka." he sounded almost sad, and her vision self died, impaled on a lightsaber held by one of her most trusted friends._

_The Jedi took over, unwittingly sewing the seeds of war all over the galaxy._

_War raged for a thousand years, before the Jedi manipulated the Force to destroy their enemy, accidentally destroying themselves as well._

She bolted up in her bed, screaming, coated in cold sweat, when an alarm rang through the Temple. She quickly dressed in her effects, bolting out of the room and caloing her lightsaber to her hand. Just as she entered the hallway, Marek ran by, obviously making for the exit of the Temple.

"What's going on?" she asked hurriedly, sprinting beside him.

"The Separatists are attacking. They've already landed hundreds of droids in the Senate district."

They reached the massive entrance of the Temple to see droid dropships landing near the bottom of the steps into the entrance.

Marek ignited his lightsaber, flipping it into a reversed grip and charging at the enemy, rage flowing through him.

The Chancellor. They had to get to the Chancellor, or he would no doubt be taken!

With that, she sprinted faster than she ever had, making for the Senate building with all haste.

**And, with those final words, we begin the Revenge of the Sith.**

**I hope you liked this one, and enjoyed the quick update. Chapter 7 will be up within the week.**

**I've decided to make this story my main focus for a while.**

**Special thanks to**

_**DarkWriter6**_

_**alienvspredator5**_

_**san davis 687**_

**Vote on my poll in you have time.**

**Please review. Even if you despised it.**


	8. Chapter 7: Defense of the Capitol

Chapter 7

_Defense of the Capitol_

The droids fell by the dozens on Marek's blade of aqua coloured plasma. His inhuman cries of rage echoed through the chaotic night like the sound of a banshee's charge.

Jumping over a droideka, he sent a Force push into a B2 and stabbed an SBD through the head. Then he noticed there was no green blade accompanying his.

Ahsoka had made a break for the Senate building.

Concerned, he smashed the last of the droids back into their dropship, blowing it to pieces, and followed his friend, running with Force enhanced speed to catch up to her.

The alarms echoed in his ears, a loud whining sound that sent chills vibrating up and down his spine, as he finally caught up to her, hooking his now inactive saber to his belt.

"Ahsoka!" he called over the whipping wind that rushed past them.

She either didn't hear him, or ignored him. He stopped, tackling her legs out from under her.

"You stupid krething karkface!" she snapped when they stopped their roll, "We need to protect the Chancellor!"

"And what about the droids? I guarantee that there's at least three Council members protecting your friend. We need to push the droids back into orbit." he reasoned, but she wasn't having it.

"I don't care! I need to get to Palpatine!" and with that, she took off running, taking his hope of reasoning with her away violently.

She was very protective of the Chancellor, and he was determined to find out why.

He followed her, his blade once again cleaving through his enemies one by one.

...oOo...

Ahsoka couldn't believe him.

Not only was the leader of the Republic in danger, but he had the _audacity_ to knock her over while she made her way to protect Palpatine!

"Ahsoka!" she could hear him yelling, but she kept running until she reached the Senate Rotunda.

The ground was scorched by blaster fire, with Clone troops and Senate guards lying dead by the dozens.

"Oh, my Force..." she whispered, sensing the great struggle that had ensued.

"Ahsoka, wait." Marek said, stopping beside her, "We can't just rush into this!"

She ignored him and closed her eyes, trying to find Palpatine in the Force.

"No..." she collapsed to her knees, "He's gone."

...oOo...

Just as he leaned down to comfort her, a crashing sound came from behind him. He turned to see a massive six legged droid staring down at them, it's five crimson eyes boring into his with malice.

"Ahsoka, we need to leave, _now_." he said, as he gripped his saber with two hands in front of his chest and ignited the pure aqua blade. The Togruta didn't move. Just as Marek leaned down to pull her to her feet, a claw lanced from the left side of the droid and wrapped around his left arm.

"Ahsoka!" Marek screamed as he was thrown against a ferrocrete wall, and greeted there by the crack of a rib snapping. He didn't scream, and shunted the pain to the back of his mind.

The Togruta just sat there, completely immobilized. "No..." she kept whispering.

The claw lanced at him again, and the agile human just barely dodged out of the way. He sliced down at the arm on which the claw was mounted, but the blade bounced harmlessly off, leaving only a blackened area. "What the...?" the claw latched onto his arm again, tearing the durasteel skin and revealing the complicated circuitry beneath. There was no pain.

"Oh, now you're done." he said angrily, immersing himself in the Dark side. He reached up and grabbed the claw with his right hand and pumped thousands of deadly volts of electricity into it. The droid stumbled back, sparks of electricity dancing across it's skeletal body.

"DIIIIE!" he screamed as it released him. The barrage continued, blue lightning forking from his fingertips endlessly. Just as it was about to collapse, one of the claws lanced from the body and struck the side of his head, sending the boy flying back into a wall. Metal strings wrapped around his throat, dragging him up into the air. Then it squeezed. The world blurred, darkness encompassing the edges of his sight. One thing he did see, however, was a green blade of light activate and fly out at the head of the droid. It turned, and a red beam sprang from the center of it's face. The attacker sprang into motion.

...oOo...

Ahsoka ran. She jumped up, sprang off a wall, caught her returning saber and hurled it again. Her aim: flawless. Her accuracy: deadly. The blade sank itself to the hilt in the body of the creature. It let out a sound like metal grinding against stone and Marek dropped to the ground. The Togruta landed, drawing her lightsaber back to her hand as she took an offensive posture.

The beam fired again as she brought her balde forward to block. The lance of energy rebounded off the energized plasma like a laser off a mirror, cutting the front legs of the droid in half. She manipulated the beam to cleave through every one of it's long spindly legs, sending it to the ground. It ceased the beam, but blaster bolts launched from it's metallic hyde. She span her blade around her body and deflected everything that came her way.

"Look out!"

She turned briefly to see Marek jump behind her, preventing what would have been a fatal blow from striking her in the back. He screamed in pure rage, his lightsaber active as he held it above his head. She could feel him willing the claw to take him to the droid itself; and the only part of it that seemed vulnerable. She jumped up beside him and held his shoulder as they were brought closer to their target. They were peppered with lasers, but their expert skills blocked them easily.

The beast let out the droid equivalent of a screech, shattering Marek's concentration and breaking his hold. The pair was thrown back.

"Any more bright ideas?" she asked bitingly, cradling her pained leg.

"Yeah, one." he replied. The lightsaber he held sheathed itself as he dropped it and sprea his arms wide. The droid watched him cautiously, and then, deeming him unthreatening, lunged. He jumped up and it's faceplate struck the ground. Marek landed on it's back and closed his eyes. Ahsoka could feel the Force, Dark _and_ Light swirl around him at that moment, before a powerful shockwave -more powetful Forcewise than anything she'd ever felt- burst outward from him, crushing the massive droid into the pavement like a bug.

Even still, it's bright red photoreceptors didn't die. Not one, not two, but _seven_ claws grabbed hold of Marek. His whole body tensed, and the claws started to pull away from each other.

They were tearing him limb from limb.

Ignoring her pained leg, she called both of their lightsabers to her and jumped. Any outside observer would only have seen an orange spot in the center of a bullsaw of green and aqua light. Ahsoka hurled both lightsabers down into the massive droid, tearing into the apparently softer coverings of it's head. She landed, pulled her lightsaber from it's head, and stabbed into it's primary photoreceptor and everything behind it. It convulsed, striking her with one of the claw arms and sent her flying back. She snapped her eyes shut as she struck the side of the nearest standing structure and fell to the ground.

Parts flew around as it's head exploded. It's body fell to the ground, completely limp.

Then, it exploded as well.

Had it not been for the Force shield she erected around herself, she'd have died. Smoke filled the air. The sounds of distant battle broke the ringing in her ears. Her eyes widened in horror as she realized that it had still been gripping Marek when it exploded.

"Marek!" she cried out, "Marek, where are you?"

There was no response. She lifted herself off the ground. She was caked in dirt and soot, but she didn't care. "MAREK?" she screamed, but no one answered. She lifted pieces of rubble, but it was no use. He was gone.

"No..." she collapsed to her knees as tears sprang to her eyes. She bit her lower lip, trying desperately to hold them in, but it was useless. She wept.

She almost didn't register the arms that encircled her waist, or the lips that brushed her left Lekku. "Hey, what's all this...?" asked a very familiar voice. She whipped around and embraced Marek. Blood ran down from a gash on his forehead, but she didn't care. She kissed him passionately, and he returned it.

...oOo...

Five days of harrowing, sleepless combat passed before the two returned to the Jedi Temple, having been summoned by Master Windu. They climbed the steps, their lightsabers flashing amongst the dozens of others as they leaved through the last of the attacking droids.

"Good one!" Ahsoka shouted jovially as Marek used a B1 as a bomb to destroy a squadron of Vultures.

"Thanks!" he reciprocated, sprinting for the entrance as fast as his legs would carry him. They were met by Windu at holoprojector in the Temple entrance.

"Split the remaining troopers from the 52nd into three groups. Order Padawan Novren to coordinate a three pronged attack against the Separatist command post here." he gestured to a red projection on an otherwise blue hologram. He then seemed to notice them.

"You two, good. I need you to reinforce Master Kenobi in orbit. The Chancellor is aboard the Separatist flagship." Marek noticed Ahsoka's throat clench at those words.

"We get the gist of it, Master Windu." he said, exercising his new found respect for the formiable warrior.

"Good. Head up to the hangar take starfighters to reinforce Master Kenobi."

Without saluting, Marek grabbed Ahsoka's hand and dragged her to the nearest turbolift. "I haven't had a chance to ask yet, but what happened to my droids?" he asked as she tapped the button for the hangar.

"Rikhe was disassembled. He was resistant to your imprisonment, so the Jedi stored him in one of the sub-basements. Homer's been my copilot." she replied, squeezing his hand.

"I'm going to need him back now. He's the only one who knows my maneuvers." he tried his best to ignore the fact that they'd probably killed his droid.

"No a problem. I'll go back to using R7-A7."

The turbolift stopped and he ran to the first fighter he saw. Ahsoka stopped him and tapped a button on her wrist com. A black and white Eta-2 Actis class starfighter flew over from the ranks of fighters moored there. "Homer!" she cried.

A toot whistle beep later, a white droid was flying over the other ships and landed perfectly in the astromech socket.

"Good to see you again, buddy." he said as he climbed into the open cockpit. Lights blinked all around him, momentarily stunning him with the amount of controls on one panel. He fastened the restraints around himself and punshed the lone button above his head to close the cockpit.

"You ready, Marek?" Ahsoka asked over the com.

"Yeah, as I'll ever be." he replied.

With a beep of affirmation from his droid, he thrust the joystick controls forward, sending the starfighter screaming out of the hangar and into space.

**I am SOOOOO sorry that this chapter took so long. I've been busy, and I've been distracted. I know it's short, but it's all I could do. The next one will be longer, and will mark the beginning of the Revenge of the Sith.**

**Please review. Most readers will never know the positive reinforcement that comes with feedback from readers. It truly is awesome when I get the email that says I have a review. So please, review.**

**The next chapter, I hope, will be up within the next week or two.**


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